


South of the Border Part II

by rachelautumn



Category: Merlin - Fandom
Genre: Consensual Infidelity, M/M, This is Arthur/Gwaine but Gwaine considers sleeping with just about everybody
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-02
Updated: 2015-03-02
Packaged: 2018-03-16 01:12:51
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,047
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3468893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rachelautumn/pseuds/rachelautumn
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Gwaine tries to have a threesome with Arthur; it doesn't work out.  (Instead life gets to one of those moments.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	South of the Border Part II

**Author's Note:**

> This was written as an epilogue to answer the question: what was Gwaine thinking? It takes place after he moves to London.

No sooner had Gwaine slipped his mobile back in his pocket, then the thing was buzzing on his arse again. That was London for you, everyone always ringing you up and harassing you, and a lot of diddling around on keyboards. Christ he missed living where a man looked you in the eye when he wanted to talk to you.

Glanceing at the number he laughed outloud, startling a bunch of piegons and some citizens who glared at him over their own devices. On second thought, London was full of interesting people.

"Merlin!" he cried. "Guess who's working after 8 on a Friday, and this in the summer when the sun still shines."

On the other end Merlin laughed.

"Is it our poor, dear Arthur?"

"It is indeed." Gwaine paused with the phone bunched on his shoulder to grub out a few coins for a guy dressed up as a robot. He was cute. "Don't feel sorry for him. The man brings it on himself."

"It's only been 3 weeks." Merlin was obviously wavering. The man was a pushover.

"It doesn't matter. You know what that means."

It meant they were going out dancing, him, Merlin, Matt and Morgana plus whoever make it. That was the deal every time Arthur worked late on a Friday. It made Arthur pout and beg when they first started doing it, which Gwaine enjoyed and now he just worked hard to avoid it, which was even better.

"Yeah, I do. Looking forward to it, actually. Are we going out for dinner first?"

"Depends. Is Morgana coming? You know that woman doesn't understand the concept of food." 

"I'll call her. She likes me better anyhow." 

Quite possibly she did. Merlin was one of the most likeable people Gwaine had ever met and he and Morgana had clashed a lot lately.

"Thank you, little Merlin," he said, "You're sparing me her personal rating system for every restaurant in London."

It had actually been Morgana's idea, this tradition of going out any Friday that Arthur worked over time, but you would never know it from the way she'd been acting lately. She had been short and snappish with Arthur at work, he knew, but she was more defensive of him too. Now it made her angry if he teased Arthur too much about his extra hours, especially if he enjoyed the company at the club.

Whatever. Gwaine couldn't suppress the urge to make Morgana angry. The point of no return was different every time and it never lost its thrill. Arthur had been right, when they first got together, to warn him off of her. There was a woman who could have eaten him alive and no mistake.

"Tell her I'm bringing a date." he said, chuckling to himself in anticipation. There was a pause in which he detected Merlin's weighing what to make of that . Gwaine knew that any real cheating on Arthur would mean Merlin's soft narrow fist in his face, knew that Merlin knew he knew.

"You're a Rara Avis, Gwaine." Merlin said, having come to his conclusions.

"Like I'm the one named for a bird."

Having the best and last line was a nice little spice to life, he thought and whistled as he went to pick up his date and client, Margie. He ignored the underground sign and walked the 2 miles to Belgravia where she lived, newly wealthy, in a sea of people who had nothing in common with her but money. It was this measuring out of Gwaine's stride lengths that was making this his city, well that and Arthur and as for the work he was doing with people like Margie-maybe it made him like London more, maybe less.

Margaret was sat outside her townhouse, a white haired woman, on a white limestone step looking smaller than everything around, especially her purse, a designer bag that came up to her knees. The thing was vulgar, probably something she would have saved up for once, before she moved to this neighborhood. He liked it.

Her eyes lit up when she saw Gwaine.

"Oh just a minute there. It'll take me a moment to fiddle with the gate." She attacked the thing with fierce incompetence, while Gwaine waited patiently for the sound of the tumbler turning. He rifled through her bag.

"Aha! I knew you were the kind of mum who keeps sweeties." He took out the packet of smarties and sorted out the red ones. Margie, free at last, gave him a swift smack on the arse with her bag, which he took as fair.

"I'm afraid I'm too old to blame the kids for that." she said. She eyed him then, green eyes a little watery and the eyelashes worn away a bit under the mascara, but still a gaze that held some steel.

"Thomas left, you know. Just like you said he would."

Gwaine nodded. Money made people miserable and a sudden dump of cash like Margie had, well the proud old man he'd met wouldn't handle it, he'd predicted. He was almost always right. That was why he was so good at helping people like this, people who had to remake their lives. He took them to parties, helped them make friends again. Arthur said he was a social coach. Morgana said he was an escort. It was a job, of sorts.

He looked to see if she wanted to talk about it. She didn't. Margie was the kind of woman his sister was. She didn't hide from the truth or drink it away, it fell right through her and out the other side to be what it was. A woman like that was changed by what she saw, but never warped by it.

As usual when he thought of Freya, a wave of homesickness hit and clung to him till he felt all over moss. The thing was it wasn't just a place he was missing, it was a time, or not so much a time as a family. He was homesick for something that couldn't exist anymore.

 

There was a time, back when his Da was alive, when there was home and there was every place else. His father had been a laughing man, a wishful thinker and a gambler. There'd always been talk in town about him, what a waster he was, rushing from one scheme to the next. He'd heard the lady at the penny candy shop say she felt sorry for the man's kids, but for Gwaine and Freya, watching in the garden while he practiced being a tree doctor, or prospected for archaelogical finds, everything he did had seemed like the safest kind of adventure, a tour of what life had to offer, right at home.

When his father died, he'd lost his mother, too. She'd become just like his step father, a man who didn't understand Gwaine and didn't want to. She wasn't like Freya, or Margie, she soaked up the color of the vat she landed in and she and truth-well they didn't recognize each other.

He'd mostly given up resenting her for that. She wasn't a wicked or unloving person, she just had no center in her. Until he had met Arthur, Gwaine had been afraid that he might be like that sometimes.

"So how much do I owe you, young man?" Margie was punching through her bag, looking for her wallet, determined not to be awkward. Gwaine held her gently by the arm; it was sharp where the flesh went the other way.

"Easy now ,Margie. You paid my fee at the beginning like we discussed. I wouldn't be sneaking anything in extra-like without telling you."

"But how can I compensate you for your time? I know a good looking boy like you isn't out with me for the fun of it." 

She had her pride, did Margie. Well, so did he. Gwaine took the little hand, still soft, and gave it a kiss.

"You know I won't do what I don't like, Margie. All that cash would be wasted on me. " He checked his texts. Sure enough Merlin had sent the address where they were to meet. "Now what do you say you come with me and I'll introduce you to someone who has a use for it?"

The venue was a light, airy tapas restaurant.. These were all contradictions in terms as far as Gwaine was concerned. He'd spent his time in corners of Spain where tapas was traditional and where it wasn't, drinking his way through garlic shrimp and eggy bits, generally getting full only shortly after he'd got drunk. None of those places had ever been bright and service oriented, but he wasn't going to argue. He recognized a compromise when he saw one. No doubt Merlin had talked Morgana down from a sushi hole in the wall where it cost 200 pounds just to drink the water. 

They were sitting at the best table, able to see the bar and out onto the street, with a bit of a cozy nook. He often charmed his way to a seat like that, but he knew Morgana just accepted it as her due.

She and Merlin were easily the most interesting people in the room- not the most beautiful, this was London, after all and a fair number of people here were dining out on their looks- but the most attractive, all dark hair and bright uncompromising eyes. 

Now Morgana stood up and Gwaine could admire her figure as well as her dress, a shiney teal thing that brought out her curves. Morgana was never afraid to wear colors. 

Merlin was dressed like crap as usual. The only time Gwaine had ever been jealous of the man was the day Arthur picked out his clothes for him for an event; he had been beautiful and the garments he wore, so unlike anything he picked out himself, were like a love letter written on his body.

Gwaine was stunned at the time by the hot fury he'd felt over that. He was almost never jealous. It was because he had been dressed by Arthur many times and never was it anything more or less than an imposition. That was just the way they were.

It wasn't all bad, however. Arthur had been delighted as well as deeply moved that he could call up something so warm and wrong in Gwaine, and that confession of jealousy had won him a very long, very memorable night without any clothes on at all. 

He braced Margie very gently in the shoulder to move her forward into the circle of Merlin's dimpled smile.

"Margaret," he said, "I'd like you to meet my friends, Merlin and Morgana. Morgana is pursuing certain investments you might find interesting. Merlin's just here to look good, really."

He always introduced the younger person to the elder, used the correct form of address if there were going to be last names. No matter how drunk he was, or how tattered his elbows, his Da had always been conscientious about introductions and he had taught his son the same. Morgana had noticed this, he knew. Arthur had not. Merlin wouldn't know the difference, or care.

"Margaret! Don't you listen to Gwaine now," Merlin gave her a little kiss of the cheek in that sweet way of his. Merlin enjoyed old women. He probably should have been a geriatric doctor instead of a librarian.

"Oh I don't know. Gwaine's never steered me wrong yet." Margie grinned and Gwaine chuckled. Margie liked him first, so there!. He winked at Merlin, who looked mildly surprised but joined in the laughter with his usual good nature.

"Oh I like you already, Margaret!!" Morgana swooped in and made for Margie's cheeks. "Loyal and immune to charm."

Where Morgana swooped, seats always appeared and they sat down. Gwaine watched the two women finding a use for themselves and their money. There was no doubt that Morgana's reform work would be a good match for Margie's needs. He hoped that Margie would be a bit of a guide for Morgana in return. she'd been off lately. She needed a mum, he thought.

"So they're pretty scary." Merlin sat closer to him, sniffing at his gambas al ajillo a little speculatively. Gwaine ate it right off the fork before Merlin could recover. His indignant expression was hilarious

"Oh Margie's alright. I do think Morgana might stage a coup soon, if she doesn't get her way."

Merlin nodded. Arthur was running the new foundation at Pendragon but it was Morgana's idea originally. He remembered Arthur coming down for Morgana's proposal, the time that Gwaine stood in the airport and bet him his own Irish arse he couldn't do it. Now one branch of Pendragon industries at least, was a perfect model of fair business practices, but Morgana didn't necessarily believe Arthur was capable of doing the right thing for long .

"You're not kidding?"

He looked at Merlin. Arthur's ex appeared to be a soft man. He was thin and a little goofy. He looked under his long eyelashes a lot and smiled back at whoever let him, a pleaser. He would want everyone to be happy. But Gwaine didn't believe in softening blows.

"I'm not kidding. Morgana is definitely itching to do more and she and Arthur are going to lock horns soon." Not that there was anything they could do about it now. Gwaine didn't believe in thinking if it was not accompanied by doing, either. It was time to change the subject. 

"So I notice there's no Matt." he said. Merlin's boyfriend was supposed to be in London looking for work with the plan of moving in with Merlin permanently and his absence was glaring

Merlin turned his head away.

"Yeah, I meant to talk to you about that. We've decided to let things go, for now."

Gwaine snorted. In his experience no one was crueler than a pleaser. Thank Christ for Arthur's fat, selfish love. He could feed a whole army on what he wanted for himself, his Arthur.

"You mean," he said." you gently suggested you only wanted to see him every other Tuesday and eventually he realised you didn't love him."

"It wasn't like that." Merlin looked at the women as if hoping for rescue. They ignored him.

"Sure it was. That kid hung on your every word. You probably spent weeks building a little trail of them away from you."

Merlin was getting a little riled and uncomfortable and his cheeks were pinking a bit. Arthur hadn't wanted to say much about how they were together, but he imagined this would be Merlin in bed, all awkward until he got pinker and pinker and went a little mad.

"What's this?" Morgana poked her face between them with the check in hand. "We've paid up, boys. Funny how you can spot someone's tits escaping from across the room, but you never see the bill."

"Merlin's just broken up with Matt, is all," Gwaine said. He saw Merlin glance briefly at Margie. Gwaine saw no need to pussyfoot around details of who liked what kind of lover. Besides if he had Margie's number, she wouldn't care.

"I'm sorry," Morgana said. "Though I'm not surprised." 

"I'm sorry." Margerie's eyes were a little wet. "I've just ended something myself. My husband left me.

Ah Christ, he'd been such a selfish lout, forgetting Margie's loss like that. Gwaine opened his mouth to say something, but Merlin beat him to it.

"Well that just makes our numbers even, doesn't it, Gwaine?" He flashed Margie his biggest, most ear splitting grin. "Let's make it a double date. Shall we drag Margaret out on the dance floor?"

She didn't go, of course, but Gwaine could see she had enjoyed being asked. That was good; he'd made the right call inviting Margie. There was nothing he liked better than giving pleasure, and if people always got hung up on the sexual part of that, then the crassness was theirs.

* * *

 

Heaven was not Gwaine's preferrred spot; it was too big by half and full of people who could only be interesting as part of the crowd, a roomfull of cells, trying to be one organism . He still had a trained reaction to the heat and the dump of sweat and liquor in the air, though. They should never have started this thing with punishing Arthur. If he had been there, Gwaine would already have had him struggling like a fish on the line between his thighs, while he pulled his cock right out of his trousers, just slightly too close to the crowd for him to be comfortable, and Arthur would have come hard and fast before going completely limp and just a little angry afterwards.

"What are you grinning at?" Morgana asked, bringing his tequila shots to the table. He opened his mouth to tell her, because she asked, but she must have sensed it. "Never mind. Forget I asked. I just wanted to say I like Margaret."

"Anytime." She really wanted to know if he was going to pull, of course. Sometimes he did, if Arthur wasn't there. He could feel the anger under the surface of that teal silk dress. It was very hard sometimes not to place a thumb, just a thumb on the little lump of nipple under the fabric because it would be very dangerous and very good.

"Stop looking at my breasts!" She flounced away, hips swinging, which was almost as nice. "And not my arse either!" She shouted over her shoulder. He raised his glass. This was the point at which Matt always attempted to be a mitigating influence and it was true that that beige politeness of his gave him limp dick like few other things, but it wouldn't have been enough to hold him back tonight. He was going to need distraction.

There were a lot of things simmering away these days. Arthur was starting to take on more of a leadership role at the Pendragon Foundation. It turned out that starting a foundation wasn't all parties and goody bags after all.. Gwaine had been the instigator of it, ironically. Now he wished he hadn't. There was a reason the Friday night policy had started.

The other thing was Morgana. Morgana should have felt gratified that Arthur was seeing things her way, but instead he felt her resentment starting, not to be in charge when she'd thought of it first. It was just a little ball of yeast starter for now, but there was a whole loaf coming. Then there was his own work. It was a business what he did now, if he was honest. The time was coming when he might need an office, or a degree or something else permanent like that, which he didn't like to think on. And now there was Merlin, newly single to add into the mix. 

Merlin was dancing away, holding his drink over his head and looking at his knees instead of the crowd of hopeful predators he'd attracted. 

Time to dance and help winnow the crowd or there was no telling how many arseholes would show up one by one to audition at the table. Merlin could never sort and reject. He felt a hand in his, Morgana. She smiled, reading his mind.

"Arthur was always chasing them away. Sometimes he just stepped on their feet."

They danced over to Merlin and Gwaine felt it all sliding in to place like one of those little square puzzles with the tile missing, his hips, Merlin's hips, all their arms overhead.

Eventually even the most persistent of Merlin's admirers realized he literally couldn't get a hand in and drifted away and it was just Morgana and Merlin and him, Merlin dancing all close and practically jabbing in the eye half the time, the clumsy git and Morgana all prissy. All her elbow jabs were on purpose.

If Arthur were there, he would be struggling between laughter and sullen "Not my sister, not my ex!"stares. The man wasn't there, but he was careful anyway to be even with his touch, whatever Morgana got, Merlin got. an arm around the waist, a hand closing on a hip. 

It was too balanced to last. Eventually Morgana gave in and let herself fight for more of his attention.

"You bastard, you're really good at making me not mad at you" she whispered in his ear and leaned a bit, pretending to be drunk. He enjoyed feeling her sharp, delicate shoulder contrasting with the meat of her rump. He wished she wouldn't pretend, but if he called her on it, she'd stomp off.

"I like to see you having a good time, Morgana," he said instead. "You really need it."

It was true.

He pretended to pinch her arse and she pretended to slap his hand and after a while it wasn't pretend flirting. She swung her breasts and uncaged some of her smiles, really enjoying herself. It was Merlin who started to look uncomfortable, eyeing the exits and slowing his gyrations slightily. He probably wanted to talk about Matt.

"Hey I'm going out for a fag," Gwaine said. "Want to join me?"

It was a little cooler outside which was nice. It felt better than the cigarette. The habit had been falling away from him for a while, probably because Arthur wouldn't keep him company while he smoked.

"You know I could use one." Merlin held out his hand, but Gwaine slapped it back.

"Not a chance, last time I had you smoking, there was a row with Arthur I don't plan to repeat." 

Actually it had been a quick jab to the solar plexus, but whatever. 

"Yeah, he's right. I'll just regret it later when I want to run.` He knows me too well."

Gwaine grunted. So this was going to be about Arthur, really. "And you don't mind him making your mind up for you, then?" That had been the reason they broke up he knew. Merlin found Arthur overbearing. Well, Arthur was overbearing.

Merlin laughed. "I don't miss that; except now I can admit he has a point sometimes." Then his face fell. "I should have known he'd be right about Matt, too."

"You mean he told you that boy turned you into a pompous old man? Cos I could have told you the same if you'd asked."

Merlin smacked his hand on Gwaine's head. It was nothing. He'd gotten many a hit there in the name of Truth before.

"No," he said. "oh I don't know if you're the person I should be telling this."

Gwaine threw the fag way, only half smoked.

"Try me." Merlin was a good guy, one of Gwaine's best friends now that he thought about it. He wasn't the innocent Arthur thought he was, but he was alive while he was blundering about and not a zombie like most people. He deserved an ear, even if it was about Arthur before Gwaine got there.

"It was our last fight, before I left, the last time he tried to get me back." Merlin eyed him sideways, but Gwaine didn't react. "He said prove to me that you really love him, that this guy isn't just your anti Arthur. They hadn't even met and I was so sick of Arthur's bullying by then I didn't even pay attention, but he was right. I didn't really pick Matt for himself. He was just Arthur's opposite."

Merlin flung his head onto Gwaine's chest.

"I am such a prick." he moaned. Gwaine gave him a little pat on his back

"Yeah. You are." he said. Merlin looked up outraged and Gwaine was able to see that his eyes were wet. He pulled one over -large ear. The man really was adorable; it wasn't surprising Arthur fell for him so hard. 

"Don't worry." he said, "I don't mind. I'm with Arthur, after all. I enjoy a good prick."

"Oh my God, you're awful" 

"Fit company for you then." 

Merlin looked at him a little longer than his grin lasted. Gwaine felt the moment come and go when he could have told him that Arthur still loved him. He might tell him someday when the time was right, but not just now.

He thought of Arthur, at home by now, probably scrunching his hair in his hands as he tried to get ahead of tomorrow's paperwork so there wouldn't be a repeat next week. Or maybe he was curled up on the couch in the glasses he pretended not to need, reading one of those daft dog mysteries he gobbled up. They usually made love this time of night and he might be in the shower, cock rising out of habit and his broad palm curled around it, his mouth open and his eyes closed.

Gwaine felt his own need rising, as if he was there with Arthur. If he was, he'd probably be grabbing one arse cheek and then the other, pulling them apart like he was tearing open a grapefruit. He'd like to suck at that prick they were joking about too, but he couldn't reach it by himself if he was at the man's arse. Somebody else would be doing it, a girl, a boy...

He looked up at Merlin, imagining it was him in front of Arthur- such a beautiful mouth he had on him; it was obscenely lush really, it was perfect and right there and it was completely out of bounds. Sure he could get him to kiss, even come home, maybe even get Arthur to take them both to bed. It would be one night and it would all be dead around him when he woke up between them in the morning- all friendship, all trust gone. Where had this power come from, he wondered, to lay waste to people like that? It had never been true before; he could fuck and dance and drink how he liked and no harm done. Well he'd gotten arrested a few times, but no harm to other people.

"Sod it, I'm going out there," he said.

"You're going to get off with someone." Merlin didn't sound angry, more puzzled. Gwaine grinned. He knew when there was a spark of intelligent interest in someone's eye.

"Arthur knows what it means and what it doesn't mean." Gwaine said. He never took it too far, didn't want to.

"How do you get Arthur to accept that?" Merlin was standing between him and the door, as if Gwaine had to give the right answer or he wouldn't pass. "You didn't know him before. I couldn't even smile at a waitress without him bristling up and I don't even like girls that way."

Gwaine shrugged. How could he explain the tug of war that lay between them, how Arthur counted on his pull in the opposite direction to fight his tendency to take too much, how if he let Arthur go altogether, he would fall down himself? That conversation too could wait. 

"Anyway, aren't you on the pull yourself? You're single now." he pointed out.

Merlin rolled his eyes. "I can't meet anyone at a club. In the dark all the creeps look nice to me and I don't see the nice ones at all."

It was amazing after the conversation they'd just had that Merlin thought he was attracted to nice people. Gwaine considered telling him, but it would be a waste of energy.

"How about I find you someone who will rub you the wrong way in just the right way, then?"

"How can you tell it won't be a vampire or an axe murderer or something?"

Gwaine grinned. "Leave it to Uncle Gwaine."

This time when they danced, Gwaine made sure to leave one side open all the time. He flung Morgana about too, till she shrieked, which he was sure she would deny till her dying day. When a minature Greg Loughenis came by, he started to Salsa with her, leaving Merlin wide open.

Gwaine stepped on one of the guy's feet, noting the good shoes, not too trendy. The bloke did well for himself but wasn't the bitchy type, probably. The guy pushed into his space a little in response, standing up for himself but not aggressing. He was looking at Merlin now and getting a grin back. Alright.

Gwaine winked at Merlin and then moved behind, easing a hand around his middle. it was no hardship; he could just feel the trail of course hair when he tickled, promising a nice slide down the plane of Merlin's stomach. Of course Merlin laughed for him and he could feel the guy's eyes harden, but he didn't say anything. He didn't leave either, but he placed a hand on Merlin's shoulder.

Pushy but not angry, persistent but not unaware. He was alright.

"That one." he whispered in Merlin's ear and then he was on his own.

* * *

He found her in the corner, looking at her phone. At first he thought she was waiting for a friend to vomit or something; she looked to be done partying, fishnet stockings criss-crossed on the floor, not for display, hair over her face.

"You done with it all?" he asked. It was almost a dig. When did he get so old he had to make fun of the young ones?

"Oh no!" He was surprised at how bright her eyes were when she looked up at him. "I'm up for loads more, I just had to find out what happened on something I'm working on." She laughed and then raised her eyebrows. "Hey, I was almost done hoping someone hot would want to talk to me."

Well he could work with that. Gwaine led her to the dance floor where he discovered that she was tireless and cheerful and that most of her height was in her platform boots.

"I'd love to see you first thing in the morning, little sunshine." he said. She stuck her tongue out at him.

"Naff nickname,"

"No it's not and I'm serious." He danced closer, relishing the moment when she had to look up, not ahead. She would be so good for Arthur if he let her. She'd cheer him right up. Just the thought of Arthur's hands swamping her little breasts...yeah. And he'd look huge pumping in and out of her, maybe while she sucked Gwaine's cock.

His hand crept out almost of its own volition and touched the hem of her little black skirt. It was just some soft jersey and the stockings were held up by garters. She wanted to be accessible. He checked in with her eyes, amber he thought, though it was hard to tell in the lighting of the club. He crept his hand up. When she smiled he moved them to a darker tighter corner and tucked inside her knickers. It was a tight fit but he ignored the ache in his hand, made her ride his fingers to the beat till she came.

"Oh shit, fuck," she said while he sucked his fingers clean. "Do you want to go?"

"That depends. I need you to know this is just the one time. I have a partner.' It still felt odd to say these yellow light words while trying to pull.

"Oh, and you're cheating or she doesn't mind?"

"He doesn't mind." At least he mostly didn't.

"Oh! " she repeated the expression he'd first seen of pleasant surprise. "Wow, that would be fun, I think."

Of course he couldn't leave the club without running into Morgana. That was a boner killer. They stared at each other for so long, Sunshine felt she had to introduce herself.

"I'm Marisa...." she began, but Morgana was only looking at Gwaine.

"Why do you do this?"

Gwaine could not find the words. How could he tell her that he loved watching Arthur react, how he would flood with jealousy and then, just open a little more till it drained away. He would hold himself straighter and yet refuse to stiffen, the original challenge, the one their relationship was founded on, renewed. He was so brave, his Angel.

Morgana would never understand. LIke Arthur she was strong, but unlike him she was brittle. She probably could not conceive of how breathtakingly beautiful Arthur was that moment when he bared his neck like that. It wasn't something Gwaine wanted to put in words anyway. Words sullied some things. And there was no way she would ever believe that it was all the same whether Arthur rejected the company- he usually did- or if he joined in. It was the acceptance that was their moment.

"It's all in fun, Morgana" he said instead of anything true. She just stalked away. He had to admit the words probably deserved her derisive sneer. 

"So is this going to be weird?" Sunshine- Marisa- asked in the cab. He pulled her silky light brown head to his chest and stroked her thigh just above the stocking line.

"Nah, Arthur's sister is a little over protective, not to worry."

"And what will Arthur do?" She didn't sound worried, more curious. He reached his hand up higher, aware that cab drivers were far more tolerant of sex in the back seat when it involved girls than boys.

"He'll either ignore you, or he'll watch or he'll join in," he said, shifting her weight so the swell of his cock rubbed into her narrow little bum. She wriggled pleasantly and he brought his hand back to check inside her panties She was completely soaked.. She was a goer this one.

Arthur was waiting up when they got in and Gwaine could see right away it was the wrong night. All the lights were on for one thing and the dining room table was set with some pattern of fine china he didn't know Arthur owned. Was there a dinner party he'd forgotten?

Arthur himself sat on his ridiculous black leather sofa that clashed with every nice piece of furniture in the room, bolt up right. The book fell off his lap, when he rose.

"Oh Gwaine," Arthur closed his eyes and opened them again as if hoping to see something different. "not this time." He looked irritated and he could defintely feel Marisa inching behind him a little, but she didn't need to worry.

It was common knowledge to everyone who knew Arthur well that his degrees of annoyance were just as clearly broadcast as the color codes for terror alerts. Gwaine had experienced everything from the mild yellow of drinking the last of the milk for Arthur's tea to the full blown red that time he convinced Merlin to camp over night in Kew Gardens. Arthur had been beyond furious when he met them at the station at 4 am to bail them out. This was nowhere near that.

Arthur sighed and tore off his glasses. Even in his flannel pajama bottoms and undervest he looked lovely, maybe especially half -dressed like that.

"Arthur this is Marisa," Gwaine said. "Marisa this is Arthur, my boyfriend."

"Oh go ahead and sit down," Arthur looked her up and down, taking in her skimpy club clothes and wee frame. I'll get you a blanket, maybe." The look he threw Gwaine was supposed to be punishing, but all he saw was the fondness in it.

"I'll do it." Gwaine wanted to hide the smile he couldn't help, so he trotted into their bedroom. It smelled of them, but was immaculate only because it belonged to Arthur. Gwaine had contributed the red and white Hawaiian quilt. Now it had soaked up a thousand memories of Arthur. Gwaine reached for the extra duvet at the bottom of the bed instead.

When he came back, Marisa was tucked on the couch drinking tea, telling Arthur all about her project. Arthur was actually listening, a half smile on his face, showing Gwaine his profile, all nose and jaw. He couldn't resist kissing both as dumped the cover over all of them. Arthur rolled his eyes.

"You know I'm not actually a dragon. You don't have to feed me maidens." he said, but he kissed Gwaine back. He even looked at Sunshine quickly. Gwaine hadn't miscalculated, apart from timing. He liked her.

He placed his hands on Arthur's shoulders, hard under the soft vest and kissed again, giving Arthur's full, broad mouth a little tour with his tongue. It was still as satisfying as the first time in that hotel in Mexico. He could feel Sunshine's gaze on them and feel everything beneath the flannel. Arthur's groin grew warmer along with Gwaine's hopes, but then he sighed and shifted Gwaine off of him.

"You're timing's not good, Gwaine. You know you do have a mobile."

Of course he could have called, but the Moment when Arthur stretched open for him like a virgin orifice was much better when it was unexpected. Gwaine flopped back on the couch. He held Marisa's hand, since it was awkward and gave her a little chaste peck to show he'd well and truly given up.

"So I should offer Sunshine the guest room."

"Actually, we have a guest in there now, " Arthur said.

"Oh," That had never happened before. Well at least it explained the table settings. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Arthur's irritation popped up to orange.

"I didn't tell you because it was supposed to be a surprise!" He got up and paced around the kitchen a bit. Gwaine had the feeling he was looking for the whiskey. 

"I drank it all, I'm sorry," he called out and then he and Marisa started to giggle because Arthur looked ridiculous trying to tear his hair out and be polite and scream without raising his voice all at the same time in his pajamas. There had been a copy of The Three Little Pigs in Gwaine's nursery library where the wolf had the same expression, right after the last pig got away.

Well, Gwaine was never one not to press an advantage

"Do you think our guest would mind a little more company in the morning?" he asked before Arthur could find his voice again. "It's awfully late. And we've already got the duvet out here." Maybe they could all try it again in the afternoon after the guest was gone.

Arthur deflated and sank back onto the couch. He shook his head at Gwaine and it was a show of exasperation, but not the good kind and it stole a little bit from his moment, which he didn't like.

"You tell me, Gwaine," Arthur shrugged. "Do you think your sister and Marisa Sunshine will get along?"

"Freya? Freya's here?"

Arthur spread his hands out and clapped them in again.

"Yup. I thought you'd be pleased."

Gwaine breathed in air that was distinctly different from what he'd just breathed out. It had the cool, grassy smell of Ireland in it and the rosemary rinse his mother and sister both used in their hair. It was not an air that had ever mixed with the fetid atmosphere of a club before. And he didn't like the thought of his sister being in such a place, to be honest, though he knew it was probable that she and Marisa were the same age.

"I want to see her, yeah." Gwaine said, "But I wonder what might bring her down so sudden-like." A suspicion formed. "It's not more about the trust, is it?"

Arthur pushed Gwaine's hair out of his eyes and the care in his voice told him all he needed to know about the nature of the visit. It was to be business, the kind with lawyers that stole your home and your love away if you let it.

"I hate it when you frown." Arthur spoke softly, for him alone. Gwaine couldn't answer. Arthur went on. "It's a lot of things she wanted to talk to you about in person, but the surprise was my fault."

He peered around Gwaine's shoulder at Marisa, who had brought out her smart phone again and was tapping away.

Actually Freya would probably like Marisa. She enjoyed most people, though she didn't admire many. She had looked up to Gwaine most of their lives. He wondered if that would last, now that she was grown up.

"Ah it can't be helped. Sunshine, I'm afraid you'll have to go." Gwaine forced himself to stand and pull the young lady up. "I think you and my sister would just gang up on us old men if you stayed till morning."

He gave her what he hoped was the right wry smile to convey firm regret. Arthur was already calling a cab, he saw.

"I guess you don't want your sister to know you sleep around, huh." Marisa said. It was a crude and short summation of what was a lot more complicated, but he supposed it fit the facts.

"I just don't want her to be like me, I guess." he admitted. They walked in silence to he curb.

"Men," said Sunshine as she stepped into the cab, pulling her heavy boot inside with her. "Are hypocritical arses." It was a conversation starter Freya would have enjoyed, he thought and he almost told the cab to stay after all.

Back upstairs he reached for words to say, but for only the second or third time in his life, they all failed him.

Arthur was stood at the window, still looking down at the place where Gwaine and Marisa had just been. When he turned around his face softened.

"You look a little shell shocked. I'm sorry. I guess it's weird for you..." he shook his head, trying to rattle the right words out like he did sometimes. "Maybe you never wanted Freya to come to London?'

When Gwaine still couldn't answer, Arthur stalked over and picked him up, hauling him up by his arse so that Gwaine was forced to cling to him or risk falling over. He carried him all the way into the bedroom. Arthur stood a the foot of the bed with Gwaine's legs on either side of his waist, breathing hard from the effort.

"I love you so fucking much." Arthur said. "And Freya's fine and it will all be fine."

He laid him down on the sea of red and white pineapples. Arthur's eyes was roaming hungrily over his body and he felt a a slapping swelling inside, as if he was a tide compelled by two separate moons. part of him wanted to hear that, part of him didn't. 

"This is what you want, isn't it?' Gwaine said. "That she comes here and we'll all be rich again and a family again and no harm done. Well that's not how the story goes."

Arthur went very still above him. For a moment Gwaine thought he was angry and he felt a familiar kind of awful. This was the kind of anger that he kicked away from. The timetable at Victoria Station came to mind and damn if he didn't know a few departures without even trying. But the body above his didn't stiffen

Arthur gave him a little shake. "Don't you act a brat on me, Gwaine. I've worked hard to be with you like we are. I let you go out there with Merlin, even and do God knows what."

Gwaine gave a derisive little laugh. There was nothing he could do with Merlin that could be any harsher than the fact that Arthur loved him all the time.

"And yes," Arthur continued, "I'm keeping a home here for you to come back to and I'm not going to apologize to you because you like it."

Gwaine stared at Arthur unable to know anything outside of the beauty of that face. He'd never been hooked on prettiness, but Arthur was something else.

"Fuck me now and we'll talk about it in the morning." he said. And Arthur laughed.

He plucked the little weight that his father's necklace made out of the hollow of Gwaine's throat and kissed undertneath it, and scooped it with his tongue.

"I'm glad she's here," he said in a fierce whisper, "I'm glad you're back alone and it's just us in this bed."

Arthur never knew when to stop. Didn't Gwaine tell him to be quiet about it, so they could forget about everything but the now that sex made? Arthur's eyes were so childishly truculent while he was yanking Gwaine's clothes off; he was so naive. He really felt there was a reason for everything and a proper place and that Gwaine belonged somewhere and he was just going to keep pushing till everything got there.

At least he got down to the business of taking his clothes off with the same ferocity. Arthur pulled his vest off in one go. He'd lost his self-consciousness around Gwaine a long time ago, trusting Gwaine could look at his shoulders and his chest all day. He undid the drawstring of his pajama bottoms, too, leaving him that beautiful ludicrous animal, a naked man with his cock out.

Gwaine sat up so he could reach it. He found the lube blind and got that pretty, fat thing of Arthur's all slick and started to pull, watching Arthur's face flick back and forth between grimace and slack. He had half a mind to jerk him till he was covered all over his face with spunk. He wanted to be drowned tonight. But he had other plans.

Gwaine opened his knees to show his own cock. He'd always thought it was kind of ugly, what with the knob a good inch and a half wider than the rest of it, but he accepted that most of his lovers didn't agree. Arthur especially loved the oversize head of Gwaine's cock in his mouth and catching on the rim of his hole; he kind of raved about it and well a little reminder of how much Arthur liked him wouldn't hurt. Sure enough Arthur's eyes went down, down.

"Come back here I want to get you in my mouth, Angel."

Gwaine got on his knees and Arthur leaned against the wall with one hand to feed his cock in his mouth. He'd gone pink at the cheeks already and his breaths were coming fast

"Just want to hear you say Arthur for once." he said, rough.

"When it's time to call your name out, you'll know. Angel" Gwaine couldn't resist getting a little word in like before he lost the use of his mouth for talking. He was already teasing his tongue around the ridge of the head and he knew Arthur was not going to be making any more corrections. Maybe if he didn't have his mouth full he might explain.

Arthur thought he called him Angel the same way he said "Blondie" or "Princess" but it was not the same. Actually he meant it quite literally. By far the best thing about Arthur was his innocence, his certainty that there was a path that was right,and it didn't seem separate from his beauty but a part of it, like an Angel.

Gwaine spread his hands over the rounds of Arthur's arse,reaching for the full octave on each globe and took more of his cock in, listening to Arthur groan above him.

"Oh God, Gwaine, do you really want me to fuck you? I'm not going to make it"

Gwaine caught the sack of balls in his knuckles, till Arthur winced, pulling Arthur out of himself. 

"Yeah, I just want to be all filled up everywhere first." Arthur's faced softened.

"Yeah, OK,"

The next thing he knew, the heel of Arthur's hand was square between his shoulder blades and he was going down. Gwaine had always pitied the straight guys who couldn't be here, hot face to the bed and arse cooling in the air, getting spread - yeah those were Arthur's decisive hands, getting fingered... no getting licked and then fingered.

"I don't need too long," Gwaine said. Mostly he liked to draw this part out. often Gwaine came just like this, but he wanted to be deccimated tonight, not coddled. 

Arthur whipped him over,, so that they were facing each other. They weren't touching yet; it was just Arthur's eyes on his, but they were watching for Gwaine's reaction, not searching to find out what he wanted. They both already knew how it was going to be when Gwaine was in a mood like this.

Arthur had put a condom on while Gwaine was blind. Even with all the positive associations, Gwaine hated the smell of the things. He'd love to get rid of it. If he was ever going to go for the monogamous life style that would be why, or maybe if his sister lived in the house, or a child. Jesus he was trying not to think in that direction.

Gwaine grinned up from off his elbows to where Arthur was kneeling there, one hand on his dick like he was afraid it would get off the starting gate without him.

"Arthur, I want you to sink that thing in me so deep, and so fast you can't smell it's a johnny."

"yeah, OK." Arthur kissed him, though first, hands in his hair and lips almost gentle.

"I trust you." he whispered over Gwaine's mouth, "And I know whatever happens tomorrow that won't change."

Gwaine felt his eyes tear. He yanked on Arthur's hair, so his would sting, too.

"I guess I don't need those handcuffs anymore, then."

"Hold on to the bars," was all Arthur said. Gwaine reached for the iron barred head board behind him. Arthur hooked his legs over his shoulders and there were only a few strokes of warning before Arthur was fucking him brutally in half. The bed rattled and shook. Arthur liked that he knew, the macho prick.

There was always at least one point in his love making where Arthur had to prove he was the larger of the two of them. That was one reason Gwaine brought home girls and twinks for him, not that he let himself appreciate it. But now Arthur wasn't thinking about dominating. Gwaine could feel the difference, how Arthur's face was half locked in something that looked like pain, only to flare open when their eyes met. He saw love there, more than he thought. 

And it was good the pounding. It felt so effortlessly delicious, one of those times he dissapeared into the beat of it and the pleasure inside didn't keep slipping away, but caught and built. Finally Arthur's face twisted and he pumped his hand over Gwaine's cock and added that pleasure to spike on top of the other. 

"Fuck I love you," Gwaine repeated Arthur's words without thinking, though he almost never cursed, right before he came, shaking for a long glorious while.

"I heard you say that." Arthur was nuzzling his hair, but his voice was full of his triumphant grin. Gwaine almost never said the l word either.

"Shut up." 

Usually one of them rolled away in the night because Gwaine liked to sleep on his back. Tonight they both fell asleep still entwined and slept like the dead and Gwaine only wondered for a moment how much his sister might have heard.

 

It came to mind next morning, though. Gwaine stumbled into the dining room in his ratty old robe and there was his sister, wearing lipstick like a grown woman and she smiled her familiar smile under a different color.

"You're late, though I can understand why your're tired."

"Freya! My girl it's so good to see you." he held her, relieved to feel the same bones sheltered there as always and her hair still smelled of rosemary. "I'm sorry I must stink."

She wrinkled her nose. "You smell the same as usual, Gwaine. Like you've been out in the gutter and come in too late to take a shower."

She was tidy and wild at the same time as always, wearing a fitted tweed coat and jeans and riding boots, but with her hair dark curls all over the place. She wore it all a little differently, though. There was no silly glitter, no skin showing just to make mummy angry.

"Sorry, I think Arthur's still in the shower" 

She grinned. "Well I'm almost done making fresh scones. I threw those day old ones Arthur got away. Why don't you join him, while I get it all on the table?" Gwaine groaned. He may even have blushed. Freya was the only person in the world who could make him feel self conscious about what he did in bed.

"You're supposed to pretend you don't know about sex, Freya."

"What you don't want people to know, you should learn to keep quiet."

She shot him the v sign and went back into the kitchen.

* * *

Soon they were all sat around the table. Gwaine tried to ignore the legal folders right where Freya sat, focusing on the china. The blue delph china was beautiful; if it was the kind that Oscar Wilde found harder and harder to live up to, Freya didn't seem to feel it. She poured for everyone as if the place was hers.

"Thank you, Freya. I can see you're a civilizing influence." Arthur said.

He was smiling and purring under the feminine attention. Gwaine wanted to kick him, so he did.

Freya gave him the look she always had, when she knew he needed a moment. He nodded. 

"Arthur, I couldn't find anything like milk, do you think you could get it?"

Arthur looked from one to the other. He stood up and rested a hand for a moment on Gwaine's shoulder. It felt for a moment like his father's hand. He felt his heart stutter. Arthur nodded.

 

"Right. I'll be back in five."

As soon as the door closed, Freya left her place and sat next to him. She put her hand over his. Once again it was a touch he hadn't felt for a long time. They hugged often, but they hadn't held hands since she was a little girl, back when he used to call her Cousin It because she was just a bit of a thing under all that hair.

 

The very last time they had held hands was the day he left. She had cried then and he had nearly turned around, very nearly . He felt his eyes borrow some of those tears now and blinked them back. Bah, if there was one thing he wasn't, it was a sentimentalist.

"Mum sends he regards, Gwaine. She misses you." Freya said, trying to force his eyes up. He just shook his head. She kept going. "And Robert thinks you should come home more."

"Oh does he now?" Now he was looking right at her. It was almost unbelievable that his sister, his one ally, should mention the fucker's name, the mother-fucker and it was literally true; that was what the man was.

"He doesn't know what he did wrong, you know" She said.

"He doesn't know he stole what my father gave us and threw it all away?" It had been a long time since Gwaine had stated his grievance outloud and this was never the real one anyway, the real one didn't have to do with anything in those folders. But Freya knew about both sorrows and she shouldn't have mentioned it. 

She shook her head.

"He's like a white board." she waved a hand between them, "it's all erased."

"Nothing wrong with my memory."

"No, and you're right, of course, but the thing is what Arthur did..."

She looked up and he remembered the time they talk about what Arthur did. He wouldn't be here now if she hadn't said that Arthur hadn't changed anything, but of course he had. "He got the legal issue all out in the open and now they're saying that the property Robert bought with your trust belongs to you."

"Ah." Gwaine felt a constriction in his chest. He looked at the door. He wanted Arthur to come back now.

"So he's told himself a story. " She paused. Gwaine could feel her unspoken judgement on their step father "That he did it for you, that the property is his patrimony and you are his son. You inherited it."

"That man is not my father and the only thing he can give me is a lie." Gwaine crumpled the scone in his hand till it was like sand. "You know that, Freya. Why did you come here to tell me this crap?"

She brimmed up with tears and Gwaine would have hated himself if even one had fallen. But she drew herself up, all 5 feet 2 of her and Gwaine knew that she had finally discovered that she was stronger than he was.

"Da lied, too, you know."

Gwaine shook his head.

"He did. He always said each time he sank everything we had, it would be the last time. They weren't as different as you like to think."

"Freya..."

She came up to him and rested her head on his chest

"I know he was our Da, and it was truer, and we loved him, but you did the right thing trying to let me have a family with Robert and mother. You wouldn't have done that if you'd thought it was an evil place. I just want you to have the same thing."

Gwaine sat down, tried to breathe.

"I don't know if I can take what he's giving out like that."

"I know. You don't have to. I just don't want you to punish yourself to make a point. Arthur says...."

"What does Arthur say?" The man himself stood in the doorway. The gold was just coming back into his half dry hair and his eyes were bright. Fuck him for being so happy about all this.

"You said it's all up to Gwaine now what he does."

"Ah that." Gwaine was glad that Arthur darkened over because he would have hated him if he hadn't.

Arthur reached over and tapped a finger on the folder. 

"DId Freya tell you what this is?"

Gwaine nodded.

"The good news is you're as poor as a church mouse if you want to be, since property is worth almost nothing in Ireland at the moment."

His eyebrows were high.

"The bad news is Freya's not."

"I've got my own schemes, I'm afraid," she said. Why had he never noticed she had his Da's smile?

Arthur was grinning too he saw and just like that he knew their future. Freya might stay here in London and he would get an office for his projects here, while she was at Uni. He could see Arthur a little older, more pompous in the same chair and Morgana and Merlin too at the table. And Freya would pour

Or maybe he and Freya would go back to Ireland and run a little inn with a pub downstairs and make one of their father's dreams into their dream. There had been so many failures to fix. There were many to choose from. 

Or there was always the departure time at the train station and he could leave Freya behind to mark his place as he always had, only now he wouldn't have to worry about her. She was a woman now.

From each one of these visions there burst forth rays of light and punches of destruction. If he went home, he'd lose Arthur. If he became a Londoner, he'd lose home. He could keep one thing and lose another. 

He looked between Freya and Arthur's faces. They were of the same mind, he saw, like two actors highlighted on the stage while the rest stayed dark. They were so bent on moving forward. They couldn't see that in this moment before anything had happened, it could all be true. It was all still safe inside him in this moment and if he left the dark and rushed to share the spotlight time would move on. Well, He wouldn't decide yet. if there was anything that Gwaine had learned, it was to enjoy the moment right now.


End file.
